Spain Snapshots: My Perfect Madrileño Day

Danny and I were on our third glass of vermouth in Malasaña when it dawned on me: Madrid had finally won me over.

Between the barrio life, the collision of old and traditional with new and different and the balmy late spring nights, La Capital is quickly becoming one of my favorite escapes in Spain.

Madrid isn’t as outright beautiful as Seville or as wildly gorgeous as the calas on Menorca. It’s not old and cobblestoned or dripping in Gaudí’s whimsical architecture. It’s a bit grandiose on one block, and a bit gritty on the next.

Simply put, it’s a Spanish city that encompasses it all and is the epicenter for nearly everything in Iberia.

My most recent trip to Madrid was two-fold: I was coming back from an emergency trip to the US, and I’d be brainstorming and hamming in front of the camera for a project I’m working on with other social media darlings. But as soon as I’d touched down in Barajas, my jet lag dissipated, and I spent the day retracing my favorite madrileño haunts and finding new spots to love.

As a beef-loving Chicago girl living amongst pigs, bullfighters, and a whole lotta canis, Cat Gaa writes about expat life in Seville, Spain. When not cavorting with adorable Spanish grandpas or struggling with Spanish prepositions, she works in higher education at an American university in Madrid and freelances with other publications, like Rough Guides and The Spain Scoop.

I’ve been through Madrid a couple of times, and it’s not a bad way to be introduced to the rest of Spain. Given how “all roads lead to Madrid” (right up to the marker in the centre of town), I thought of the capital as my way of looking out to other parts of the country for me to wish and see and experience. Thanks for your post, Cat; oddly enough, it’s the Metro sign at Gran Via that made me feel longing for Madrid. Henry | @fotoeins recently posted..Fotoeins Friday: On the Boate in the Italian Riviera

Madrid’s not my favorite city in the world, but somehow I keep coming back here (thanks US Airways)…and loving it, too. The unique, slate-tiled pointy steeples everywhere, the tangible life in every street, and the variety that each barrio has to offer make me excited when the train rolls into Chamartín or Atocha. Trevor Huxham recently posted..Zaragoza, Spain: The Aragonese Metropolis

It IS hard not to pass through Madrid! I think having so many great friends there has helped me get past the touristy sections and more into the barrio life. Seville feels like a big town to me, so the excitement of city life gets to me all the time!

Hola, soy Cat.

I'm a Chicago girl who turned down a job in radio and turned up in Seville, Spain. Especially akin to tapas, siestas and frilly flamenco dresses. S&S is my virtual love letter to Southern Spain. [Más …]